When to Plant Pentas in Wilmington, IL

One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Wilmington you will be able to determine when to plant pentas.

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Planting Calendar for Pentas

Frost tolerance for pentas: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After all chance of frost has passed.

Since pentas are not cold tolerant you really should wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant pentas
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant pentas
Probably not a good time to plant pentas

The earliest that you can plant pentas in Wilmington is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant pentas and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your pentas may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your pentas indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Wilmington. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Wilmington may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Wilmington it frosts late in the year after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your pentas in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Wilmington

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low-15°F
Highest Expected Low-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Wilmington

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Wilmington.